Method and means for depressurizing containers



New; '4; 1958 J. Q. HORNE, JR 2,858,721

- METHOD AND MEANS FOR DEPRESSURIZING CONTAINERS Filed NOV. 3, 1955 IN VEN TOR:

JomesQ.Horne,Jk.

United States Patent Qfiice 2,858,721 Patented Nov. 4, 1958 METHOD AND MEANS FOR DEPRESSURIZING CONTAINERS James Q. Horne, Jr., Princeton, N. J.

Application November 3, 1955, Serial No. 544,730

9 Claims. (Cl. 813.47)

This invention relates to punch-type openers of a kind which may be used to vent cans or bottles of beer or other substances sealed under pressure or engendering pressure when heated or agitated.

The primary object of the invention is to porvide a simple means of forming an opening in a container andof immediately controlling the escape of pressurized material through that opening. This is accomplished by using a perforating device surrounded by resilient material to form the initial hole in the container, since the force used in making a perforation also serves to compress the resilient material when it comes in contact with the outer surface of the container. The rate of escape of the contents may then be regulated by varying the pressure exerted on the resilient material.

A further object of the invention is to provide a combined unit which, in addition to the apparatus described, also includes an ordinary beer-can opener or bottle opener, or both. This is accomplished by mounting the perforating device and the resilient material on a common handle with a conventional opener. A still further object of the invention is to provide a means of conven iently controlling the passage of gaseous or other material through a hole already existing in a container. This is often necessary when the contents of the container are agitated subsequent to the initial perforation of the container or when the operator desires to control the outflow of liquid from one opening in the container by regulating the amount of air entering a different opening.

The tendency of pressurized liquids to atomize the moment any sort of small hole is made in their container is well known. This frequently results in visual impairent or sartorial disaster for the person trying to open such a container. If the container is a can and if the initial perforation is increased quickly in size to the maximum dimensions permitted by the usual beer-can opener these atomizing effects may be reduced considerably, but a gushing action then occurs which is equally devasting and which may result in the loss of as much as half of the contents of the can. It should be obvious to those practiced in the art that the atomizing and gushing described here are both caused by the high speed at which the canned material is allowed to escape. Hence, it follows that by lowering the escape velocity of the material, these undesirable effects should be correspondingly reduced. Experimentation has proved that this is actually the case, and the apparatus of the present invention affords an easy means of accomplishing this end. The manner in which the apparatus operates should become clear upon examination of the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings, Fig. l is a perspective view of the perforating and pressure-equalizing device as it is applied to a beer can or similar container in actual use. *FigL Z is a combination side-elevation and cross-section showing the device and a can just as the perforating is about to begin. Fig. 3 is a combination side-elevation and crosssection showing the device after the can has been perforated and while the resilient material is being hcldin contact with the top of the can in order to slow down the initial outpouring of gas and liquid. Fig. 4 is a relatively enlarged side view of the perforating and pressure equalizing device with the resilient material shown in cross-section. Fig. 5 is a plan view of the under side of the apparatus shown in the other figures. Fig. 6 is a side elevation of the same apparatus as it is about to be used to vent and depressurize a bottle of gaseous or effervescent material prior to removal of the sealing cap thereof.

Referring to the drawings in detail, it will be noted that the basic elements of the present invention are contained in two simple parts, a perforating member 1 and a resilient member 2, the latter having a hole in it to accommodate the formed. These two elements are mounted on a common backing member. of generally fiat configuration; in the preferred embodiment illustrated this takes the form of an off-set end-section 3 built into the handle 4 of a punch-type can opener 5 and/ or bottle opener 6) of more-or-less conventional design.

In the present embodiment, the perforating member 1 is pictured as having an extension 7 of smaller lateral dimensions than the main body of the perforating member and passing through a hole in the end-section 3 of the handle 4. This extension may be flared, crimped, or soldered to hold the perforating member 1 securely in place. An alternate arrangement would be to eliminate the extension 7 and the hole encompassing it and attach the base of the perforating member 1 directly to the endsection 3 by means of welding, brazing, or any other appropriate process. An embodiment could also be constructed in which the perforating member and a backing member corresponding to the end-section 3 would be formed as a unit from a single piece of material.

In order to keep the perforating member relatively short and blunt and still have it puncture the container easily and produce a hole of suflicient size, it is necessary to shape it so that it will have a shearing action when in use, This means that its tapered outer surface should be angular rather than rounded (i. e. more pyramidal than conical) so that the penetrating force will be concentrated at its corners, thereby parting the material of the container in straight lines radiating from the point of initial penetration. In the accompanying drawings, the shape of the perforating member 1which is made from round stockrepresents a particularly effective application of this principle. A purely conical perforating member of similar proportions was found to be impractical when used in conjunction with the other elements of the same embodiment.

Regarding the relative size and shape of the perforating member 1 and the resilient material 2 and the manner in which these elements co-operate in actual use, it will be noted that the tapered portion of the perforating member l-as shown in Fig. 4extends well below the outer surface of the resilient material 2. This means that the size of the hole made by the perforating member 1 will continue to increase after the resilient material 2 has come in contact with the container and has begun to be compressed. Thus, when the perforating member 1 and the resilient material 2 are both backed off slightly to allow some of the confined material to escape; an increasingly large amount of clearance is created between the perforating member and the edges of the hole it has made. This reduces the initial atomizing tendency of the escaping material and facilitates control of its flow by the resilient material 2.

It will be noted that the resilient material should be of sufficient thickness and compressibility to conform readily to irregularsurfaces such as those created by the reinforcing ridges 8 pictured in the tops of the cans Q in Figs .2.and.3.,..and. which.are present in .most. beer .c.aus

and similar containers.

In the embodiment illustratedrthe resilient material 2 would-normally be held in-Lplace ;by cementing; it.to:th.e

end-section; 3 of the composite :device; :Alternate. waysv of doing this-wouldrincludeamaking. the holeiint-the resil-.

ient material-small'enough to grip -the perforating mem-.:. ber snugly,,or using.matching'projectionsvand recesses-to.- keep -.the resilientmaterial .from slippingoff: the perforat--- ing member. In any case,-.the resilient=member should.

remain free to;move .up and down slightly;-i-nrelation to the perforating-member ias the resilient material .is;;c0mpressed.

Regardingjthe mannengin whichi-the .apparatustillus z.

The ior soinepa a h eo d t e Pu p e.

.- of'the invention.

tratedis actually-.used;-;it will be noted .thatFigs: 1 through .1

3 show the technique employedin venting -tin"-cans, while Fig. 6:shows that used-inventing;bottles, In the former case,:.the depressurizing device isoperated-in much the same-.way as the ordinary punch-type can .openen-S situated ;-at, the otherend .of the body-portion: or handle 4.-

The projecting lip, 10; is made to engage the-underside of the outer edge of the rim 11 at the top of the can 9,:and

is used as a fulcrum. The handle 4;is then raised and the perforating member 1 is forced down: through the top-of the can 9 and the resilient member 2 is brought into firm contact with-the surface ofthe top. When the resilient material has compressed sufliciently to halt the upward movementof the users hand,.zthe handle 4:is held-stationary and then lowered or tilted side-wiseuntil signs of beer or other escaping materialare noted around the outeredge of the resilient material. If the escaping substance fiows forth-too freely, itis-slowed down. with a valve-like action by increasing the pressure on the resilient material. If the pressure of the canned material does not appear to be great. or ifit diminishes, the force applied. to the resilient member is reduced accordingly. When the can pressure and atmospheric pressure are substantially equal, the depressurizing device is removed from the can. The hole which has been formed during this operation will be considerably smaller than that made by an ordinary punch-type can opener and is usedlater to allow air to pass into the can when its contents-are poured or. drunk out of an opening made by a convet1- tional opener in the opposite side of the top of the can.

Due to the shape of the perforating member and the greater leverage behind it, the preferred depressurizing device is considerably. easier to operate than most punchtype can openers....Thus,,even .whenthe contents of the can are well-settled and relatively freefrom pressure, thereis still someadvantage in using the device to form the customary. .air hole. This feature. should be of particular interest to.-women, since some of them have been known to complain of the amount. of effort required to operate the usualtype of beer-can opener.

Figure 6. illustrates the manner in which the apparatus of the present embodiment is used to depressurize material put up in. bottles or. other containers having crowntype caps or seals. The tip of the perforating member is rested on the cap 12 of the bottle 13 at a point slightly out from the center of the cap. The main body of the composite device is held in one of the operator's hands (usually the right) and pressure is applied with the heel of the other hand directly above the perforating member and resilient material as indicated by the arrow. When the perforation has been made, the operator. controls the escape of the compressed gas and other material by varying the pressure exerted by his hand. This operation is extremely easy to perform and even the most violently agitated bottles of fermented or carbonated liquids can be depressurized in this way with no spillage at all. Once the depressurizing has been completed, the cap can be removed Without fear of further complications by means of an ordinary opener such as the bottle opener 6-incorporated in the composite apparatus as illustrated in Figs.

1 and 5.

What is claimed as new is as-follows:

l. The method of depressuring a sealed container which comprises puncturing awall of the container. while simultaneously applying. by pressure. .a seal .to the wall about the puncture and preventing'the escape of pressure from the container, varying.- -.the pressure applied .to said seal and thereby controlling the release of pressure from within the container between the punctured wall and said seal.

2. A depressuring device for containers, said device comprising a handle; aperforating :member ;mounted-, upon andprojectingdaterally from saidhandle; at Oll6 end thereof-,- -ful crum means projecting laterally from said.- handle and in angular relatiomto said perforating: meme ber and upon the same side thereof with said perforating 5' member and spaced inwardly of the handle from the perforatingmemberfor gripping and pivotal engagement; with a rim of a container,.a resilient sealing member. surrounding said perforating member and .having a sealing; surface surrounding the perforating member and of suf. ficientsizeto establish a fluidatight sealing engagementwith that portion of the wall of a container which surrounds the puncture made by-said perforating member.. .1.

3. A depressuring device for containers,.which. device comprises a handle, a rod-like member mounted upon.

and projecting laterally from said handle at one end thereoffor engagement in a vent opening in the wall of a .container, fulcrum means projecting laterally from said handle and in angular relation to said rod-like rnem-.v ber and --.upon.the same side thereof with said rod-like member and spaced inwardly of the handle from said rod-like vmember for gripping andlpivotal engagement with a rim of a container, a sealingmember surrounding said rod-like member and having a resilient sealing surface engageable with that portion of the wall of a containernwhich immediately surrounds the vent opening.

4. Thecombination of claim-2 wherein the exterior surface of said perforating member has a relatively inclined surface, said inclined surface having an upper edge disposed within the resilient sealing member and spaced inwardly thereof from said sealing surface, said inclined, surface sloping from its upperedge. inwardly of said perforating member towardsthe perforating portion thereof.

5. The combination of claim 2 wherein said sealing member engagesand is secured to said perforating mern-.

surface of said rod-like member has a relatively inclined surface, said inclined surface having an upper edge disposed within the resilientsealing member in spaced relation to said sealing surface and sloping inwardly of said rod-like member to the end thereof which is remote from said handle.

8. The combination of claim 3 wherein said sealing member engages and is secured. to said rod-like memben. 9. The-combination of claim..3 wherein said sealing.

memberv engagesand is secured to said rod-like member, and the exterior surface of said rod-like member has a relatively inclined surface, said inclined surface having an upper edge disposed within the resilient sealing member in spaced relation to said sealing surface and sloping inwardly of said rod-like member to the end thereof which is remote from said handle. 5

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,154,718 Neff Sept. 28, 1915 10 6 Mullane Feb. 25, 1919 Pico June 25, 1929 Mumaugh May 11, 1937 Kusnarowis June 1, 1937 Luppert Feb. 18, 1941 

